Department for Transport

Road Works

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the cost to high street businesses of street works that (1) overrun, and (2) exceed budget.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The Government has not made a specific assessment of the cost to high street business of street works that overrun. It is for the works promoter to consider the impact of works that exceed budget. The Government published an Impact Assessment in 2012 to accompany the most recent change in legislation affecting the charges that local authorities can levy against the promoters of street works that overrun. The Impact Assessment considered the benefits to businesses of the proposals in terms of reduced congestion. We are also aware of the general disruption that street works can cause and we are committed to improving the way that they are managed. We know that high street businesses benefit from improvements to the network and from the provision of new and upgraded utility services. However, we are working closely with the sector to ensure that street works are in place for no longer than is necessary.

Air Traffic Control

Lord Harris of Haringey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the implications for UK-based airlines of the Single European Sky when the UK leaves the EU.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The Government is considering carefully all the potential implications arising from the UK’s exit from the EU for our aviation industry. This includes the implications for UK-based airlines relating to Air Traffic Management and the Single European Sky after the UK leaves the EU.

East Coast Railway Line

Lord Bradshaw: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the current capacity and reliability constraints on the East Coast Main Line railway will be comprehensively addressed in Control Period 6.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The Government intends to articulate in 2017 its emerging priorities for improvements to train services and the national rail network (including possible enhancements to the East Coast Main Line) from 2019. In Control Period 5 the Intercity Express Programme will provide the infrastructure to operate new trains from December 2018 which will reduce journey times and increase capacity. Schemes as part of the East Connectivity Fund will also be delivered to improve capacity and reduce journey times, the first of which is enhancements in the Doncaster area set to be complete by May 2017.

Home Office

Visas: Israel

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what distinction they draw in issuing visas between Israeli citizens who live in Israel and those who live in illegal settlements in the West Bank.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: All applications for visas, entry clearances and leave to enter at the border are considered against the criteria set out in the published Immigration Rules (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/immigration-rules) regardless of the applicant’s nationality or where they live.A variety of factors may be taken into account when considering the application, but that would depend upon the applicant’s personal circumstances and what they had applied to do in the UK.

Alcoholic Drinks: Sales

Lord Brooke of Alverthorpe: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the operation of the current law on the sale of (1) powdered alcohol, and (2) vaporised alcohol, in the UK.

Lord Brooke of Alverthorpe: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the public benefit accruing from licensing the sale of powdered and vaporised alcohol.

Lord Brooke of Alverthorpe: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have had discussions with the alcohol, tobacco and food industries about the licensing for sale of powdered and vaporised alcohol.

Lord Brooke of Alverthorpe: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to prevent the sale of powdered and vaporised alcohol to children and under 18-year olds, especially online.

Lord Brooke of Alverthorpe: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to prevent powdered alcohol being mixed with soft drinks and consumed in places such as at football matches where consuming alcohol is presently prohibited.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: Alcohol is defined in the Licensing Act 2003 as “spirits, wine, beer, cider or any other fermented, distilled or spiritous liquor”. A provision in the Policing and Crime Bill will amend the definition of alcohol in the 2003 Act to include alcohol “in any state”. This will provide legal clarity that the sale of powdered and vaporised alcohol must be regulated under the 2003 Act in the same way as other forms of alcohol.An impact assessment entitled powdered and vaporised alcohol has been published on gov.uk under the provisions in the Policing and Crime Bill: firearms and alcohol licensing.As far as the Government is aware, powdered alcohol is not yet on sale in the UK or elsewhere, including online, or that there are any plans to sell it in the UK. Vaporised alcohol is sold in a few licensed premises as a novelty product, but the Government is not aware of it being sold without a licence.Members of the public are protected from the effects of irresponsible alcohol sales through regulation under the 2003 Act. Regulation focuses on the prevention of harmful sales while retaining the benefits of responsible sales. The Act contains a number of criminal offences relating to the sale and supply of alcohol, including the offence of selling alcohol to a child under the age of 18. Licence holders must comply with the age verification requirements under the 2003 Act, including when alcohol is sold online.Consultation on bringing powdered and vaporised alcohol into the definition of alcohol was undertaken via workshops in summer 2015, which were attended by industry partners such as the British Beer and Pub Association, Association of Convenience Stores, Wine and Spirits Trade Association, and Association of Licensed Multiple Retailers. These partners were in agreement that the legal position should be put beyond doubt.The Sporting Events (Control of Alcohol etc) Act 1985 prohibits the possession of alcohol when entering designated sports grounds and from areas where the event may be directly viewed. This includes, for example, entry into football stadia and within sight of the football pitch. The amendment to the definition of alcohol in the 2003 Act will carry over into this Act, so the possession of powdered alcohol will become an offence in these circumstances. Preventing people from taking alcohol, in any form, into football matches or similar places where alcohol is prohibited is a safety and security matter for the venues themselves.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Intelligence Services

Lord Campbell of Pittenweem: To ask Her Majesty’s Government from which organisations they receive open source intelligence, in addition to that provided by the BBC monitoring service.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office, in common with other Government departments, receives a wide range of free and paid-for open source information. FCO Staff have, for example, access to books (electronic and hard copy), news and social media, subscription services for journals and academia, and output from think tanks and research organisations.

Department for Education

Students: Loans

Baroness Wolf of Dulwich: To ask Her Majesty’s Government under what circumstances a student may currently obtain a loan from the Student Loans Company for the fees for an equivalent level qualification at degree or sub-degree level.

Viscount Younger of Leckie: Students must already hold an honours degree and must be personally eligible for support in order to qualify for a tuition fee loan for an equivalent level qualification.In addition, they must be studying for a part-time degree in engineering, technology or computer science, and study should be at least 25% intensity of a full-time equivalent course. Graduates entering full-time study must be studying on a graduate entry accelerated medical or dental degree of no more than four years’ duration.

Higher Education: Disability

Lord Addington: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of changes to departmental responsibility for the Disabled Students Allowance, where the minimum standards for disability adjustment that Higher Education Institutions must undertake are published.

Viscount Younger of Leckie: As independent, autonomous bodies, higher education institutions are responsible for ensuring they comply with the Equality Act 2010’s provisions in respect of disabled students. Guidance on the Act’s requirements is available from the Equality and Human Rights Commission; and guidance on managing reasonable adjustments in higher education under the Act is available from the Equality Challenge Unit.

Higher Education: Disability

Lord Addington: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the recent changes to the Disabled Students Allowance, what guidance has been issued to the Higher Education sector on the provision of support for disabled students.

Viscount Younger of Leckie: Student Finance England issued guidance on Disabled Students’ Allowances for the academic year 2016/17 in February 2016. My Department has been working with the Higher Education sector to develop guidance on good practice in inclusive provision for disabled students, which will be issued shortly.

Arts: Curriculum

The Earl of Glasgow: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will give further consideration to including the arts and other creative industries within future school curricula.

Lord Nash: The Government believes that every child should experience a high quality creative education throughout their time at school. That is why subjects such as music, art and design, drama and dance are included in the National Curriculum for 5-14 year olds. The National Curriculum is compulsory for maintained schools. Academies and free schools are not required to teach the National Curriculum but can use it as a benchmark. They can also use their freedoms to innovate and build more stretching and tailored curricula, to meet the particular needs of their pupils or their local area or the particular ethos of the school. All schools, including academies and free schools, must provide a broad and balanced curriculum that promotes the spiritual, moral, cultural, mental and physical development of pupils at the school and of society.

Ministry of Justice

Prisoners: Basic Skills

Lord Browne of Belmont: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what was the estimated (1) numeracy, and (2) literacy, rate among prisoners in each of the last three years.

Lord Keen of Elie: Prisons should be places of safety and reform. I am determined to make sure that we achieve better outcomes for all prisoners including in education, and I want to see much clearer accountability for prison governors for the education delivered in prison and the results prisoners achieve. Mandatory education assessments were introduced for the first time in August 2014, for all new receptions to custody in England. This shows that in the year to September 2015 fewer than half the people entering prisons had basic standards of English and maths, and around a third had identified learning difficulties or disabilities. Data prior to August 2014 is not available. Prison education is a devolved matter in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

Social Security Benefits: Appeals

Baroness Thomas of Winchester: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the proposal to remove a panel member with direct experience of disability from appeals for Disability Living Allowance, Personal Independence Payment and Attendance Allowance.

Lord Keen of Elie: The Government is investing close to £1 billion to reform and digitise our courts and tribunals to deliver swifter and more certain justice. Technology will be at the forefront of our reforms but specific support will be provided to ensure tribunals remain accessible to all and physical hearings will continue to be used to resolve many cases. An impact assessment was published alongside the Transforming our Justice System consultation paper. The panel composition reforms will ensure that the most appropriate panel is always selected to hear a case. As now, relevant expertise will always be available where needed, regardless of how a case is resolved. The Senior President of Tribunals will continue to determine when panel members are used.

Department for Work and Pensions

Social Security Benefits

Baroness Thomas of Winchester: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of inflation on those who rely on benefits.

Lord Freud: Central to the Government’s long term economic plan is the creation of jobs and making work pay. We know that work is the best route out of poverty so our welfare reforms are focussed on supporting those people who can work to find and keep work rather than rely on benefits, ensuring fairness and affordability for the tax payer. We are committed to balancing incentivising work with protecting pensioners and those who cannot work, and help with the costs of additional needs. That is why benefits for the additional costs of disability, and for carers, are up-rated each year in line with prices, and the basic and new State Pensions are up-rated with our triple lock guarantee.

Department for Communities and Local Government

North East Combined Authority

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to work with the North East Combined Authority following recent decisions not to proceed with a Metro Mayor.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: The Government remains fully committed to the North East and to devolution, and we have made clear our willingness to work with North East leaders who want to discuss options for a new deal. We stand ready to work with those councils that share our aim to boost jobs, create opportunities and build a stronger Northern Powerhouse. This guides our ongoing engagement with councils in the area.

Infrastructure: Environment Protection

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking with local government to promote green infrastructure.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: The government is committed to developing a 25 year plan to improve the environment and this will include the importance of green infrastructure as a key underpinning of both the economy and well being.The government is spending more than £600 million by 2020 to support the development, manufacture and uptake of electric ultra low emission vehicles in the UK. Part of this includes assisting local authorities by providing grant funding through the On Street Residential Scheme and Workplace Chargepoint Scheme to help meet the cost of installing electric vehicle chargepoints on streets in residential areas without access to off-street parking. Under the Go Ultra Low City Scheme the government is supporting a variety of infrastructure programmes for both public and domestic chargepoints across eight cities/regions of Bristol/West of England, London, Nottingham, Milton Keynes, York, Dundee, Oxford and the North East.The government has made £1.5 million available to communities to create 'Pocket Parks', turning unused spaces into sensory gardens, wildlife habitats and food growing areas. The government has also submitted written evidence to the Select Committee inquiry on the future of public parks and will respond to any recommendations made as a result of this inquiry in due course.

Housing: Construction

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking to encourage house building on sites where planning permissions have been given for house building.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: We are keen to drive up delivery of new housing once permission has been granted and we are actively taking steps to tackle some of the factors which can delay a start to development. We are taking forward measures through the Neighbourhood Planning Bill, which was introduced on 7 September, to improve the use of planning conditions to avoid unnecessary delays to development. We have also, through the Housing and Planning Act 2016, introduced a provision for a section 106 dispute resolution process. This will assist in speeding up negotiations on the content of section 106 planning obligations, where developers and local authorities have failed to reach an agreement. Secondary legislation is required to implement the provision. We also expect the members of the Home Builders Federation to adhere to their commitments in May to provide local authorities with transparent annual returns on build-out rates. And we will be setting out further measures in the forthcoming Housing White Paper.

Department for Exiting the European Union

UK Withdrawal from EU

Viscount Waverley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what role they are proposing to give Parliament in scrutinising the outcome of the negotiations relating to the UK leaving the EU, prior to the final conclusion of those negotiations.

Viscount Waverley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to lay before Parliament for scrutiny the outcome of the negotiations for leaving the EU before those negotiations are concluded.

Lord Bridges of Headley: The Government will comply with all the constitutional and legal obligations that apply to the deal that we will negotiate with the EU.

Department for Exiting the European Union: Buildings

Baroness Goudie: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the Department for Exiting the EU plans to remain within the Cabinet Office premises or to relocate; and if it plans to relocate, whether it will move to its own building, or move, in its entirety or in part, to premises of another government department.

Baroness Goudie: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are planning to transfer to other government departments any of the staff currently working within the Department for Exiting the EU, and if so, what is their estimate of the proportion of staff who will be moved to (1) the Ministry of Defence, (2) the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, (3) the Cabinet Office, or (4) other government departments.

Lord Bridges of Headley: The department is permanently headquartered at 9 Downing Street. This will not change and Ministers will continue to operate from this building. Staff are also accommodated in 70 Whitehall.We are working with the Government Property Unit as where to locate further staff on a more permanent basis.DExEU staff will continue to be employed on the basis of being 'on loan' from a wide variety of departments and will not permanently transfer departments. No staff have been formally moved from DExEU to the Ministry of Defence, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the Cabinet Office, or other government departments.

Department for Exiting the European Union: Vacancies

Baroness Goudie: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many roles within the Department for Exiting the EU are currently unfilled; and how many job applications have been received for those roles.

Lord Bridges of Headley: The Department for Exiting the European Union now has over 250 staff and the expertise of 120 officials in Brussels, and is continuing to grow.We are not in a position to give a total number of job applications as recruitment is ongoing and we will not be giving a running commentary. Our aim is to have a streamlined Department, while ensuring the right skills and experience to get the best outcome for the UK.

Disaster Relief

Lord Bowness: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the UK will continue to play an active role in the EU Civil Protection mechanism after the UK leaves the EU.

Lord Bridges of Headley: The Government will discuss with the EU and member states how best to continue cooperation.

Department for International Trade

Aerospace Industry: Exports

Lord Jones: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what was the estimated value of UK aerospace exports in the last five years for which figures are available.

Lord Price: Estimates of the value of UK exports of Aerospace products for the last five years are provided below:YearExports (Current prices, £million)201120,728201222,328201324,275201422,580201524,864Source: ONS Trade in Goods Classified by CPA

Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement

Lord Empey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, in the light of the UK's decision to leave the EU, the proposed trade deal between the EU and Canada should be amended to take account of the consequent reduction in the population of the EU.

Lord Price: Until we complete our withdrawal negotiations, the UK remains a full member of the EU, with all the rights and responsibilities of membership. The UK Government has been clear in its support for the EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA). This approach is in line with our commitment to back the EU’s trade agenda and participate constructively in decision-making on trade while the UK remains a member of the EU.The negotiations between the European Commission and Canada on CETA were concluded in August 2014. A legal revision of the text making further amendments was completed in February 2016.

Department of Health

NHS: Staff

Lord Browne of Belmont: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the ratio of front-line medical staff to administrators in the NHS.

Lord Prior of Brampton: The ratio of medical staff to administrators in the National Health Service is 1:1.05. The number of medical staff includes only doctors and does not include roles such as nurses, midwives and other non-medical clinicians. Administrative staff are managers, senior managers and central functions staff who perform administrative and clerical duties.